The Strange Case of the Vietnamese
"Late Hero" Nguyen Van Be
One of the most unusual psychological campaigns of the Vietnam War concerned
the martyred hero Nguyen Van Be. According to the legend, the young Viet Cong guerrilla
was on a mission with his comrades on 30 May 1966 transporting explosives when they were
attacked and Be was captured. Rather than submit, he chose to sacrifice himself and died a
martyr’s death. The American and Vietnamese troops demanded that he instruct them on
the workings of an unknown explosive mine. Be did so. He picked up the mine high over his
head, and shouted, "Long live the National Front for Liberation. Down with American
Imperialists." He then smashed the mine against an armored vehicle, killing himself
and 69 American and Vietnamese officers and soldiers.
For six months, the Lao Dong (Communist) Party told of his heroics in prose and
song. Young men were urged to emulate the fallen hero. Be had been a model guerrilla. He
had joined the People’s Youth League at an early age and later became a volunteer in
the Liberation Army. There were poems, booklets, plays and radio broadcasts telling of
Be’s death and sacrifice. The communists in the North even wrote an opera for Be. In
addition, two statues were erected in his honor. The Viet Cong awarded him the posthumous
title of "Indomitable Loyalty and Magnificent Bravery."
The detailed story appeared in the Hanoi newspaper Phu Loi of 30 May
1966:
...[Nguyen Van Be with] two cells of the transport unit were assigned with
the mission to convey arms and ammunitions to the front. As they were approaching the Beo
Canal of My An village, My An District in Kien-Giang Province, they were encircled by a
convoy of 49 enemy armored cars.
Following a fierce fighting with the enemy, Nguyen Van Be was captured by
them. Afterwards. He was subjected to the most savage torture, and yet they were unable to
get anything from him. Finally, they took him along with the captured arms to My An
District where they resumed the torture and forced him to explain the handling of various
sorts of mines, which he had transported. Be pretended to comply with the order and set
about a demonstration session. Suddenly, he seized a mine weighing 10 kilos and shouted:
'Long Live the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, down with the American
Imperialists.' As he stated these words, he rushed like a thunderbolt at the nearest M-118
tank and banged the mine against it.
The explosion set off by the 10 kilos mine triggered a series of explosions
as the pile of mines captured by the enemy were ignited and went off. By this act of
heroism, Nguyen Van Be sacrificed himself but he had destroyed a M-118 tank and heavily
damaged two M-113 tanks, killed and wounded 64 enemies, among them 12 Americans.
Nguyen Van Be reads about his alleged
exploits in the Liberation Army Newspaper
All this exploded in their face in February 1967. Nguyen Van Be was found alive
and well in a Vietnamese prison camp. Be agreed to cooperate with the Government of
Vietnam (GVN) and told the true story of his capture in a 13 March 1967 interview. He said
that the battle lasted just a few minutes and he had never fired a shot. Instead, he dove
into a canal in an attempt to escape, but was captured when a Vietnamese soldier grabbed
him by the hair.
The opportunity to show that the enemy has brazenly lied seldom occurs in
psychological operations. The Government of Vietnam and the Joint United States Public
Affairs Office (JUSPAO) took full opportunity of the chance to strike at the communists,
embarrass them, and destroy their credibility. According to Robert W. Chandler, War of
Ideas – The U.S. Propaganda Campaign in Vietnam, A Westview Special Study,
Boulder, CO, 1981, "By July 1967 JUSPAO had publicized the Be affair for Southern
audiences through the production of more than thirty million leaflets, seven million
cartoon leaflets, 465,000 posters, a special newspaper in 175,000 copies, 167,000
photographs, 10,000 song sheets, several motion pictures, and numerous radio and
television programs featuring Be, his family, and his Hoi Chanh (Viet Cong who had
returned to the GVN) friends."
Thomas William Hoffer mentioned Nguyen Van Be in an article entitled
"Nguyen Van Be as Propaganda Hero of the North and South Vietnamese
Governments," published in The Southern Speech Communication Journal, Volume
40, 1974. He says:
A tabloid newspaper with the hero's name was produced and distributed
nationwide. Culture-drama teams, groups of Vietnamese singers and dramatists touring the
villages, carried with them 10,000 song sheets espousing 'The truth about Nguyen Van be.'
Numerous radio programs featuring Be, his family, and three other defectors were broadcast
over VTVN, the Vietnamese government owned and operated network. Plans were laid for a
weekly five-minute radio report by Be, reporting his experiences, along with commentary on
Vietnamese developments and reactions from the presses of other countries not directly
involved in the conflict.
Among many leaflets printed, one featured Be's mother, with the caption, "I
Ought to Know My Own Son." Be's three defector friends were captioned 'We Knew Too
Much' in their leaflet testimonials. Special portable exhibits including photo-panels were
produced for display at the provincial and district level. Loudspeaker tape recordings
were produced for use on airborne helicopters hovering over the Vietnamese countryside.
The Communists retaliated. They simply ignored the Allied propaganda or claimed
that it was all an American fabrication. Even though he was clearly alive, they celebrated
the anniversary of his death. They continued to write newspaper articles, make films,
erected a third statue and published another biography of his life. They simply ignored
the fact that he was alive and continued telling their lie repeatedly, believing that if
it were told often enough, the people would believe.
Communist Poster honoring Nguyen Van Be’s heroic action
Radio Hanoi attacked the disclosure that Nguyen Van Be was still alive in a
program aired 16 March 1967. The title of the commentary was, "A Dirty Psychological
Warfare Trick."
During the last few days, the psychological warfare organs of the Americans and
their lackeys in Saigon employed every propaganda trick to invent a story of the
appearance of Nguyen Van Be in their prison before they released the news that Nguyen Van
Be had been arrested and is living safe in their claws, without being tortured. The
Thieu-Ky clique's psychological warfare minister held a press conference during which a
Nguyen Van Be appeared before journalists, who questioned him.
There is nothing new in this sensational farce. Any conjuring trick of the
Americans and their lackeys is only a repetition of the ridiculous comedy they played when
they invented the story of Tran Van Van's assassin, one-eyed man who professed to be a
Viet Cong.
Taking this experience into account, this time they picked out an intact,
good-looking man. They also taught him what to say. They plotted to use time to blur the
hero's image so that they could easily deceive the public. But 10 months have not lessened
the noise of the Nguyen Van Be bomb, but made it resound more.
Brother Be's image has been carved increasingly deeply into the hearts of millions
of people. It is necessary to warn that their trick about hero Nguyen Van Be is an
insolent offense to all the Vietnamese people. They dared offend an outstanding anti-US
national salvation generation. Southern compatriots, south youths, and especially,
liberation combatants, comrades of Hero Nguyen Van Be, will surely not forgive them. We
will punish them severely.
The Lao Dong’s (Communist Party) newspaper Nhan Dan went so far as
to claim, "It is not necessary to look for Be’s replacement in the bulky
documents and files of the CIA. Zorthian (Director of JUSPAO) merely resorted to the
Hollywood technique of selecting actors and the medical art of changing facial traits as
applied in Hong Kong and Japan."
In July 1967, the Lao Dong Party offered a two million-piaster reward to any
patriot who would assassinate the fake Nguyen Van Be. They also stated that any member of
his family or neighbor who claimed that Be was alive would be killed on the spot.
Nguyen Van Be Military Postage Stamp
Nguyen Van Be appeared on several North Vietnamese stamps including a 15 February
1971 military stamp that depicted him attacking an American tank.
The Nguyen Van Be Photograph Used for the Military Stamp
Be Military Stamp on Envelope
The philatelic researcher Robert Munshower sends a used envelope bearing the Be
military stamp from his personal collection. He says:
The use of this military stamp is quite rare. There is also a civilian issue that
is different in that it is denominated and bears the normal Dan chu Cong Hoa Viet Nam
inscription. This letter was sent using the return code HT 201 203 JA 01 which is known to
be the military post at Ba Vi, North Vietnam.
The Americans continued to disseminate leaflets and other propaganda each year
on 30 May, the date that Be was allegedly killed. It was all in vain. The Communists had
succeeded in making most Vietnamese people believe that the real Be was dead and the
current Be was an imposter. This is one of the very few cases where the lie was more
powerful that the truth.
Hoffer adds:
While the North Vietnamese were denouncing the newly discovered Be in the South,
the Vietnamese and their American counterparts formed a special Nguyen Be Task Force to
exploit their discovery in roughly two phases. What later became the 'Nguyen Van Be
Campaign,' consisted of an identification phase and an exploitation phase. For the first
five months following the March 1967 press conference, Vietnamese propagandists aided by
JUSPAO 'psywarriors,' were to simply identify Be in the minds of the target audiences. The
exploitation phase occurred over a longer time with the propaganda thrust on Be's
statements about the communist emulation system, his analysis of current communist
propaganda, and his participation in various staged events.
The Americans were not unanimous in thinking that the Be campaign should be
continued. The Director of the US Military AssistanceCommand, Vietnam Psychological
Operations Directorate (MACPD) said, "The plan for further exploitaton of Nguyen Van
Be appears quite ambitious and thorough: however, it is not without risks. It should be
noted, for example, that one of the effects of our expose of the Nguyen Van Be lie has
been to stimulate the Communists to step up the Be emulation campaign, which is not to our
advantage."
The first casualty of war is truth.
Rudyard Kipling
The Late Hero Nguyen Van Be Reads About His Own Death
JUSPAO Leaflet # 66
The North Vietnamese Affairs Office of the Joint United States Public Affairs
Office (JUSPAO) in Saigon produced a leaflet coded "66." That number shows that
The Allies disseminated the leaflet in the north during the time that the United States
was bombing the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. The operations, named "Fact
Sheet" and "Frantic Goat" took place from 1965 to 1968.
The front of the leaflet bears the text:
A very strange story indeed. According to the Communists, Nguyen Van Be died a
glorious death in the service of the cause. Supposedly, after the Army of Vietnam (ARVN)
forces captured him, he detonated a mine killing himself and 69 Americans and Government
of Vietnam troops. The Communist newspapers, Radio Hanoi and Liberation Radio printed and
broadcast glowing accounts of his heroic death. Poets and musicians wrote and sang of his
exploits. The government built a statue in his honor. However, as you can plainly see on
the other side, he is very much alive. He is shown reading about his own death in the
Hanoi newspaper Tien-phong of 7 December 1966. The Communists say he chose a hero's death.
He says that he never fired a shot and did not even think about exploding a mine.
The back of the leaflet bears the text :
The 'Late Hero' Nguyen Van Be reads about his own death and depicts Be reading
the newspaper account.
The North Vietnamese Affairs Division mentioned this leaflet in their Weekly
Report, April 16 to 22:
The leaflet on Nguyen van Be continues to be an irritant to the North Vietnamese.
An editorial in the 14 April issue of Tien Phong Daily from Hanoi which was received here
this week states in part: “We all want to now, more about this young hero who
represents a shining example, a proud expression of our generation, a source of fear and
terror for the enemy who sought all dirty means to distort the spirit of his immortal war
deed.” The same issue of this paper featured a large picture of be on the front page
along with the first chapter of a book telling his “life history.” This leaflet
was dropped over Hanoi on April 10.
The Weekly Report May 13 to 19 adds:
9,600,000 copies of leaflet number 66 which tells of Nguyen van Be were dropped
over the area between the DMZ and Dong Hoi on May 17.
Truth is the best PSYOP.
Colonel Fred Walker, United States Special Operations Command.
JUSPAO Leaflet # 131 (Front)
Another leaflet dropped on the North later is coded "131." Text on
the front is:
Nguyen Van Be and Platoon Leader Nho. This photo, take in Saigon in July 1968,
shows (on left) Tran Huy Nho, of Viet Yen, Ha Bac, leader of Platoon 1-C2, 2nd Battalion,
Quyet Thang Regiment, who rallied to the national cause at Gia Dinh, near Saigon, 18 June
1968. Platoon leader Nho and 54 NVA soldiers who rallied at the same time have addressed a
letter to President Ho expressing sorrow that they had been misled by Lao Dong propaganda
and stating that, in reality, the South is free, independent and more prosperous than the
North. Platoon leader Nho was surprised to find that Nguyen Van Be, with whom he is shown
chatting, is alive and well and a supporter of the national cause. Nho now understands
that Lao Dong propagandists invented the story of Be's martyrdom for the purpose of
encouraging other soldiers to sacrifice themselves.
A photo of Be and Nho is at the left of the leaflet.
JUSPA0 Leaflet # 131 (Back)
The back of the leaflet depicts Be showing a group of Vietnamese the newspaper
that told of his heroic death. The text is:
Nguyen Van Be Exposes Lao Dong Propaganda. Two years ago Lao Dong propagandists
were seeking ways to encourage young men to sacrifice themselves for the sake of the
Party. Believing Nguyen Van Be had been killed at the Cai Beo Canal, they invented s story
saying that he had been captured, tortured, and had killed himself and 69 allied soldiers
by exploding a detonator against an armored vehicle. Even when it was revealed that be was
alive and their story false, they insisted he was dead to cover their embarrassment.
Nguyen Van Be is shown in the photo exposing the Lao Dong lie to some members of the Quyet
Thang Regiment who rallied near Saigon on 18 June 1968.
Actually, in military psychological operations (PsyOps), there is
no game-playing. Truth is of the utmost importance to achieving the mission.
362nd PSYOP Company
JUSPO Leaflet # 1775
JUSPAO developed leaflet 1775 in February 1967. It measures 5 x 7 inches. The
front of the leaflet shows Nguyen Van Be holding a newspaper that depicts him in almost
the same pose. The text is:
The 'Late Hero' Nguyen Van Be reads about his own death.
The back is all text:
A very strange story indeed. According to the Communists, Nguyen Van Be died a
glorious death in the service of the cause. Supposedly, after ARVN forces captured him he
detonated a mine killing himself and 69 Americans and GVN troops. Glowing accounts of his
death were printed in communist newspapers and read over Radio Hanoi and Liberation Radio.
Many poems and songs were written about his exploits. A statue was even built in his
honor. However, as can be plainly seen, Be is very much alive. He is shown reading about
his own death in the Hanoi newspaper Tien-phong. The Communists say he chose a hero's
death. Be says that he never fired a shot and did not even think about exploding a mine.
PSYOP messages must remain truthful to maintain credibility; however, the
impact on the target audience is only limited by the imagination of the PSYOP specialist,
the staff, and the commander.
Headquarters, Department of the Army, FM 33-1-1, Psychological Operations,
May 1994
Martyr-Hero Be Meets Again His Old Comrades
JUSPAO Leaflet # SP-2138
JUSPAO leaflet SP-2138 prepared in July 1967 depicts Nguyen Van Be meeting with
his former comrades. The text reads in part:
On July 15 1967, Nguyen Van Be met again his old comrades who had served
the same length of time with him in the Liberation Front.... Be is holding a copy of the
Tieng Phong Newspaper, which published his story in Hanoi....
The party can make a newspaper hero, but it cannot admit a mistake. If you
are really interested in reading closely, you can see the size of their error.
JUSPAO Leaflet # 2233
JUSPAO leaflet 2233, prepared in October 1967, is also about Nguyen Van Be. It
is 5 x 7 inches in size. The front of the leaflet depicts Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Huynh
Cu meeting Nguyen Van Be. The text is:
Revolutionary heroism is a propaganda trick says LTC Huynh Cu, who trained
3000 National Liberation Front officers and noncommissioned officers. LTC Huynh Cu, former
Chief of the Viet Cong Training Section, Military Region Five, who returned to the
Government of the Republic of Vietnam on 24 March 1967 at Son-Trung camp, Son Tinh
district, Quang Ngai province. Seeing Nguyen Van Be on 4 August, he related to him all the
tricks of the Liberation Front of the South is using with his name, his home village and
his unit to cheat the other young men. Nguyen Van Be burst out laughing when hearing LTC
Huynh Cu tell him about his marvelous death.
The back of the leaflet depicts LTC Cu writing a letter:
As a military man who served with Communist cadres more than twenty years,
I know well how they have to manipulate all of us to achieve their objectives. The only
reality for them is that which will serve their interests. When I was training director
for MR 5 I heard the story of Be's heroism. I doubted the story. However, I knew the
importance of making men die for the cause so I kept quiet. After returning to the
government I met Be and found that he had done nothing but let himself be captured. No
heroics, no slogan shouting, no nothing. Now that the government has revealed this, the
Communists must shout his heroism all the louder. Do you know why? Be is a victim, not a
heroic soldier! The Communists are trying to make victims of us all. I feel it is my duty
to save my comrades from emulating such false heroics.
Credible and verifiable facts whether favorable or not, are
the backbone
of the leaflet message because they demand attention.
Psychological Operations Field Manual No.33-1" published in August
1979 by Department of the Army Headquarters in Washington DC.
JUSPAO Leaflet # 2243
JUSPAO also developed leaflet 2243 in October 1967. It is very similar to 2233.
It is also 5 x 7 inches in size. It depicts the same photograph of LTC Cu and Nguyen Van
Be as is shown in the earlier leaflet on the front. Text on the front is:
Now that you are still living, you have created a big problem' LTC Huynh Cu tells
dead martyr Nguyen Van Be. Here, LTC Huynh Cu, former Chief of the Viet Cong Training
Section, Military Region Five, meets Nguyen Van Be who the communists claim is a dead
hero. LTC Cu returned to the Government of the Republic of Vietnam on 24 March 1967 at
Son-Trung Post, Son-Trinh district, Quang Ngai province. He met Nguyen Van Be in Saigon
where they discussed the communist story of Be's heroic death while blowing up ARVN and
American soldiers with a mine. Cu told Be at the time: Believe me, next time the Viet Cong
will have to look for a death certificate when they want to honor somebody as a hero. Do
you know why they persist in denying their mistake?
The back of the leaflet depicts LTC Cu writing a letter. Although the picture
was probably taken the same time as the one used in 2233, the pose is slightly different.
The text is:
Why must the communists lie about the living Nguyen Van Be? LTC Cu tells Nguyen Van
Be at their meeting in Saigon on 4 August 1967: Having made a major hero out of you, the
Viet Cong must now deny that you live. They must say that you are a bogus Be, a creature
of fiction created by the Americans. They have built a major propaganda campaign on you
and now that you are alive, the fact of your existence may destroy and refute an entire
set of arguments.
The entire mental conditioning of NVA troops, pursued through political
indoctrination sessions, the three-man cell system and constant exhortation by the cadre,
aims at achieving automatic responses reflecting the communist party view of word issues.
This rote learning becomes a powerful cohesive element. It can be chipped at only by
repeated discoveries that what has been studied and accepted as gospel truth does not
accord with visible facts in the soldier's personal experience.
JUSPAO PSYOP POLICY No. 59 -The NVA Soldier in South Vietnam as a Target dated
20 February 1968
JUSPAO Leaflet # 2005
JUSPAO leaflet 2005 is a 5 x 8 inch leaflet developed in June 1967 that depicts
Nguyen Van Be at home with his family. Eight people are pictured. The text is:
Why is the Liberation Front afraid to let people speak the truth? Nguyen Van Be is
alive, well, and shown here with his family. As anyone can see, Nguyen Van Be did not
sacrifice himself. Why are you not permitted to speak the truth?
The back of the leaflet is all text:
To the people living in the area of Kim Son Village. Have courage. In your hearts,
you know the truth, Nguyen Van Be lives. His family knows he lives. Everyone knows he
lives. Yes, even the front cadre who forbid you to speak the truth. Even they know he is
alive. You can see the truth in the eyes of the cadre. Why do you think the front must
continue to say that Nguyen Van Be is dead? Have courage; nothing can change the truth in
your heart.
The key is always to tell the truth, and never
promise something we cannot deliver. Once we have credibility, then we have an effective
message that will win over propaganda and stories told by other factions. 310th PSYOP
Company, Bamian, Afghanistan.
JUSPAO Poster # 1774
JUSPAO also prepared a number of posters showing Nguyen Van Be. One is coded
1774, developed February 1967, and measures 17 x 22 inches in size. There are three
photographs on the poster. One shows Be holding a newspaper featuring his picture (the
same photo used on several leaflets), another shows Be in profile and the third shows a
statue of Be. The text is:
HOW COULD SUCH A STRANGE THING HAPPEN? The 'late Hero' Nguyen Van Be reads
about his own death. For many months, the communist newspapers in both North and South
Vietnam have been telling everyone the fantastic story about the supreme sacrifice of the
'hero' Nguyen Van Be. Communist youth throughout Vietnam have been urged to emulate him.
According to the communist story Be was captured on 30 May 1966 after fighting like a
tiger to defend the arms and ammunition he was helping to transport along a canal near My
An. Supposedly he was later forced to explain how a new mine worked, and seizing the
opportunity he exploded it with his own hands against an armored vehicle. The communists
claimed that be gladly gave his life for the cause and killed 69 Americans and ARVN
troops. A heroic act indeed! This photograph of a statue built in honor of the 'late hero'
was published on the front page of the Hanoi newspaper Van Nghe on 6 January 1967. It is
supposed to show Be at the moment he sacrificed his life. However, read what Mr. Be has to
say: 'We were convoying ammunition along a canal in the My An district. When I heard the
Government of Vietnam shots, I plunged into the canal. I was captured after I jumped into
the water. I never did any of the things they say I did. Why would the Front say such
things?' Look at this: Here is the 'dead hero' alive and well. He is reading about his own
death in the important Hanoi newspaper Tien Phong that carried the fantastic story on the
front of the 7 December 1966 issue. Similar stories were broadcast over Radio Hanoi and
Liberation Radio, and many poems and songs were written about the 'late hero' Nguyen Van
Be.
Psychological Operations soldiers use persuasion to influence
perceptions and encourage desired behavior. The cornerstone of PSYOP is truth, credibly
presented to convince a given audience to cease resistance or take actions favorable to
friendly forces.
U. S. Army Civil Affairs and Psychological Operations Command Missions and
Functions
.
JUSPAO Poster # 1983
A second poster depicting the same photograph of Nguyen Van Be holding a
newspaper showing his picture was developed by JUSPAO in June 1967. The poster is 17 x 22
inches in size and printed in two colors. The code is 1983. The text is:
NGUYEN VAN BE IS STILL ALIVE!
The man whom the Lao Dong Party of the North and the National Liberation Front of
the South proclaim as a dead hero is in fact very much alive. However, the Front still
insists that he is dead, and urges all youth to emulate his example. Yet, here is Nguyen
Van Be holding the newspaper that describes him as the 'late hero' who sacrificed his
life. Why does the Lao Dong Party and the National Liberation Front make up such a strange
story? What do you think?
Besides leaflets, JUSPAO also produced a number of short radio and loudspeaker
tapes that told the story of Nguyen Van Be. Tape number 113 was eight minutes long and
entitled "Cousin of Nguyen Van Be." A synopsis of the text follows:
A tape statement by Nguyen Van Ba, former platoon leader, political officer, and
cousin of Nguyen Van Be. In this message, Ba (a Hoi Chanh) reminisces about classes he
conducted for the members of Nguyen Van Be's unit to inspire then to emulate Be. Upon
learning that Be was alive he realized the hoax that had been perpetrated by the Viet
Cong. He also compares living under Viet Cong control as opposed to Government of Vietnam
control, and speaks of the Chieu Hoi program urging his former comrades to rally to the
just cause.
Tape number 114 is entitled "Friend of Nguyen Van Be." This is an
11-minute tape. A synopsis of the text follows:
A tape statement by Nguyen Van Tho, former National Liberation Front sabotage
expert who knew Nguyen Van Be. This (a Hoi Chanh) reminisces about former hardships shared
with his friends in the 322 x 12 unit. He recalls classes conducted on dead hero Nguyen
Van Be and then states Be is alive and he has seen him with his own eyes. He also
emphatically states that in a technical sense of the word it would have been impossible
for Be to have exploded the mine against the armored personnel carrier as the National
Liberation Front has described the event. He then requests that his friends meet him on
the path to rally.
Tape number 115 is entitled "Squad leader from Nguyen Van Be's
Company." This is a longer 11-minute tape. A synopsis of the text follows:
Tape statement by Le Van Hue, squad leader from the same transportation company as
Nguyen Van Be. Hue states that he has rallied to the just national cause and is living a
happy life. He compares his happy life with the hardships he suffered in the Viet Cong
ranks. He also exposes the lies told by the National Liberation Front, which promised land
and assistance to fighters in the Front. He discussed the Chieu Hoi program, and insures
his former compatriots that if they rally they will receive good treatment. Hue assures
his friends that Be is alive and well, that he has seen Be, that he had been captured and
not killed, as stated by the Front. He urges his former comrades to rally to the just
cause.
Tape number 120 is only 35 seconds long. It is entitled "Nguyen Van
Be." The text is:
Dear Fellow Citizens, I am Nguyen Van Be. I am the son of Mr. Nguyen Van Hue and
Mrs. Le Thi Ba from Kim Son village, Long Binh district, Dinh Tuong province. I am a
former member of Unit 860 x 16, a transportation unit in the central area of the South. On
30 May 1966, I was captured while on a mission on the Cai Beo canal, My Quy village, Kien
Phong province. For some time the Front has proclaimed that I sacrificed my life by
exploding a mine against an M-113 troop carrier, and have honored me with the title of
'dead hero' Nguyen Van Be. However, I want you all to know that the story is not true,
because here I am, right now. I am still alive. I am alive and living here in the South. I
ask you not to emulate my example of 'sacrifice.' I am telling you all about this so that
you will know the truth.
1971 reunion of Senior Viet Cong Defectors at Ben Tre, South Vietnam
Nguyen Van Be is at the bottom right in white shirt and sunglasses.
Captain Bob Turner of the Joint United States Public Affairs Office
is above him in blue checkered shirt leaning against the wall.
Credibility is a condition of persuasion. Before you can make a man do what
you say, you must make him believe what you say. A necessary condition for gaining his
credence is that you do not permit him to catch you in lies. Hence, the constraint upon
all propagandists to accurate reporting of matters which are subject to verification by
the audience…Propaganda, to be effective, must be not only factually true, but
credible.
Sykewar, Daniel Lerner, George W. Stewart, NY., 1949.
This story of PSYOP intrigue is interesting because it seems to defy all the
laws and logic of psychological operations. We have shown over and over again that the
rules of PSYOP demand that (except in the cases of a disinformation campaign) the text of
the propaganda message be truthful and credible. Yet, in the case of Nguyen Van Be the
communists were shown to be liars. Repeatedly the Allied leaflets and posters pointed out
that the communists had lied to the people. The result should have been a complete loss in
credibility by the Vietnamese in communist propaganda. However, the old adage about the
"big Lie" seems to have worked in the enemy's favor in this case.
…The magnitude of a lie always contains a certain factor of
credibility, since the great masses of the people in the very bottom of their hearts tend
to be corrupted rather than consciously and purposely evil, and that, therefore, in view
of the primitive simplicity of their minds they more easily fall a victim to a big lie
than to a little one, since they themselves lie in little things, but would be ashamed of
lies that were too big.
Mein Kampf, Adolf Hitler.
Hanoi and the National Liberation Front controlled what their
people heard and read. They spent several hours each day in the indoctrination of their
troops. Every time the Allies pointed out the lie, the cadre counterattacked. They said
that the GVN and the Americans were the liars, and that the fake Be was a figment of their
imagination, an actor treated with plastic surgery who just pretended to be their dead
hero. This would appear to be a case where the truth did not conquer. The big lie seems to
have reigned supreme.
A lie told often enough becomes the truth.
Vladimir Ilyich Lenin.
This article is just a brief look at the Nguyen Van Be campaign carried by
JUSPAO against the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong. We have selected and depicted a few
leaflets that were particularly interesting. If any of our readers have additional
leaflets that they think should be included in this article, they are encouraged to send
them to the author. You are invited to write to the author with
comments or questions at Sgmbert@hotmail.com